Japan's Otsuka aims to apply for TB drug approval in India

Japanese drugmaker Otsuka Pharmaceutical aims to apply for approval of its tuberculosis (TB) drug delamanid in India within three months, a senior company official said, as calls grow for expanded access to the life-saving medicine. 

India accounts for about a quarter of the world's TB cases and experts say improved access to delamanid in the country is critical to control the global spread of drug-resistant strains of the airborne disease. 

Otsuka had an initial meeting on the matter with the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) in late 2016, Marc Destito, communications director of Otsuka's global TB programme, told Reuters on Monday. 

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